Courageous Fortune
by Cheetachan
Summary: Rated T, just in case. Double D has been keeping his pain secret for a long time. Eddy knew, and Ed may have some idea, but no one else. That is until his Mom found out. Unsure of what to do, she does the only thing she can think of: Call in back up.
1. Chapter 1

Hi there, thanks for clicking on my story. It's my first attempt at EEnE. Now, I know Double D might be a little OOC, but I'm sure I'll get better at writing for him with practice.

A big thanks to eyelovefantasy for being my beta reader. SHE ROCKS!!! :D

Hope you'll enjoy it, R&R please!!

* * *

Double D sighed as he looked around his house, seeing nothing but all the sticky notes that covered the walls. Those _horrid, awful…**Wonderful **_notes. He had so many mixed feelings about them, it wasn't even funny. Some days he went home hoping they would be gone, because that would mean his parents had stopped caring so much about work and finally came home to be with him. His prayers answered. Other days, he went home terrified that the notes _wouldn't _be there. Because that would mean his parents had finally got so absorbed in their work, they forgot he existed. His nightmares come true.

He stared at the notes, anger and sorrow welling up inside him. Why couldn't his parents be with him? Why did they always leave sticky notes instead of talk to him? Or even leave a voice message? Was work more important than him? Did they care more about their jobs than him?

He glared at the notes, he _hated _them. He couldn't take looking at them any more. He began tearing them off the wall, throwing them on to the floor, cursing every single one. He went from the living room to the kitchen, from there the stairs, to the hall, and the bedrooms. Soon the walls were clear of sticky notes, the shreds now covering the floor. Letting the last pieces fall from his hands, he looked at what he'd done. It was huge mess, but right then, he just didn't _care. _

He sighed again, if he didn't clean it up he'd probably get a _note _asking him to do it anyway. He started to pick them up, when he noticed something on the wall. A note he missed. He really didn't want to look at it, but curiosity got to him so he plucked it off the wall. It read:

_Dear Eddward,_

_We love you very much._

_Mom and Dad._

He felt a pang in his chest, if they loved him, then _where were they?_ These were just…Empty words. He took the note, and slowly tour it in half; he clenched it in his fist, crushing it. He lifted it up, about to throw it to the floor. But stopped, he felt something wet in his hand. There was no way that note could have been wet. It would've turned into mush. He opened his hand, and gasped at what he saw.

There was _blood_ trickling out of the tears in the paper. The paper was _bleeding._ But paper didn't bleed, it just didn't. His hands were getting covered in it, he dropped the note, he had to go wash his hands…He took a step.

_Ploock._

He looked down at the sound, and froze in terror. _All _the notes were bleeding. Was he losing his mind? This wasn't possible. It went against all reason. Panic began to grip him as he realized the blood was beginning to flood the room, they just wouldn't stop bleeding…He ran out of his room, only to find more blood. The whole house was being flooded! He ran down the stairs, if he could just get to the door…

"Ah!" he tripped on the last stair. Falling face first into the red liquid. He scrambled to get up, he was covered _in blood! _It was in his mouth! He spat, trying to get it all out. But the metallic taste already coated his tongue. He tried to get up, but just fell down again. He tried again, only to fall again. He kept trying, falling each time. He could only hold himself up on his arms. The blood was getting higher, if he didn't get out he'd drown!

He crawled toward the door, but it just got further and further away. And the blood kept getting higher and higher. It was up to his chin, about to swallow him up.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"

Double D awoke in a cold sweat, his heart nearly pounding right out of his chest. He franticly looked around, no blood was anywhere.

It was just dream…Thank goodness. He looked over at his clock. It was 4:30 AM. He didn't think he'd be able to get back to sleep. But there was no point in getting out of bed _that _early. He began to shift his position, when he noticed something by his clock: _A sticky note. _Just seeing it made his blood go cold, his nightmare still all too fresh in his mind. He reached to pick it up, hand trembling. He lifted it with the utmost caution. He knew it was just a dream, but still…He turned on a lamp so he could see it better, it said:

_Dear Eddward, _

_Have pleasant dreams._

_Love,_

_Mom and Dad._

He stared at it, after a moment tears began to role down his cheeks. And strangely he started to chuckle a little, he didn't feel like laughing at all…But the note was just so _ironic._

It was such a bizarre and almost sickening mix, to laugh and cry at the same time. He clutched the note to his chest, the closest he could get to hugging his parents. He wished it could be the real thing, and not some note. How he hated those notes.

_Those horrid, awful…__**Wonderful **__notes._


	2. Chapter 2

Chap' two! Hope you enjoy! R&R please!

* * *

_Beep, beep!_

Double D cracked his eyes open at the sound of the obnoxious alarm. He reached over and turned it off. He felt so tired, that nightmare he had really messed up his sleep cycles. He shuddered at the memory, all that blood every where…It sent a chill down his spine just thinking about it. He got out of bed and started getting his things together, hoping it would get those horrible pictures out of his head. It Didn't.

He knew the nightmare would be on his mind all day if he didn't do something about it. But what could he do? The best way to deal with bad dreams was to tell someone about them. Who could he tell? His parents were never around. And even when they were, they were always too busy getting ready for the next big project or business meeting to really have time to talk with him. And he certainly wasn't going to leave them a sticky note about it.

He looked over at the phone he had in his room. His friends should be up by now…He didn't want to bother them this early, but he needed to get it out of his system. Hesitantly, he picked up the phone. Now, which of his friends should he call? He would sometimes talk to Eddy about things like this, (Contrary to what most people thought, Eddy could actually be a pretty good listener. When he wanted to be.) But Eddy could be so…Cranky in the mornings. Ed probably wouldn't mind him calling so early, but Ed could be so oblivious that Double D wasn't sure if telling him about it would help at all. Knowing Ed he'd probably say aliens or fish zombies were to blame. With that in mind he began to dial Eddy's number.

Double D listened to the phone ring on the other side. He knew Eddy probably wouldn't be too happy with him…Maybe he should just talk to him later. He was about to hang up when the phone was picked up.

"Hello?" Eddy groggily said, Double D could practically hear him rubbing his eyes.

"Good morning Eddy." Not that it was really that good.

"Double D?" It sounded like Eddy was still in bed when he called, he should've known. "It's a little early for phone calls isn't it? I haven't even had breakfast yet…"

"Oh, I'm sorry Eddy. I could call back later…"

Apparently even when half asleep Eddy could tell something wasn't right. "Nah, it's fine." He sounded more awake now. "You okay Double D? You're voice is pretty shaky." It was? He didn't notice.

"Well, physically I'm fine but mentally I'm not so-"

"You had another nightmare, didn't you?"

"…Yes."

He heard Eddy sigh. "What was it about this time?"

* * * *

Meanwhile, unknown to Double D, something unusual was happening in the kitchen. Vivian his mother, humming a happy tune, was there making him breakfast. And not the rushed scrambled eggs she usually had to do. Nope, she was finally able to get a day off. Meaning she actually had time to make her son a proper breakfast. She was so happy! A whole day to spend with her child. It was so hard to get time off in the work she and her husband did. This day off had been on the way since September. It was now June. She wished Frank had gotten time off as well…

But, their boss wouldn't allow both of his 'best employees' to be gone at the same time. She knew how badly Frank had wanted to spend time with Eddward, but he said she should take the day off even if he couldn't. And in the end, she had to agree. At least this way there wouldn't be any calls to come back to work that day.

_Ding!_

Oh, French toast was done. She let it cool just enough for her to pick it up, then she set it on the tray of food she had prepared: Oatmeal, French toast, an orange, and a big glass of milk.

_Perfect. _She smiled to herself. She picked up the tray and headed to her son's bedroom. It had been so long since she spent any real time with Eddward. _Too long. _Her smile fell a little, she hated leaving him alone all the time. But her job kept her so busy…Of course the only reason she had the job _was _Eddward. In these hard economic times, it allowed her and Frank to make sufficient money to provide for him, for his future. It was all for him, she knew he understood that.

She reached Eddward's door, she couldn't wait to surprise him with the breakfast she made! While she was trying to shift her grip on the tray so that she could open the door, she heard her son talking. At first she found that odd, but quickly remembered that they had allowed a phone to be installed in there. It was a tad early for phone calls…She would just ask him to call his friend back later. She began to open the door, but then she heard her son say something that made her freeze.

"There was blood everywhere Eddy, it was horrible!" What?! Blood?! Her maternal instincts wanted her to run in to see if Eddward was alright, but something else kept her planted there.

"It was the worse nightmare yet." Oh, it was just a nightmare, what a relief…Wait, what did he mean 'yet'?

"…No, the blood was only coming from the sticky notes…No, my parents weren't in it this time." This time?

She could have sworn she heard him shudder. "I hate it when my nightmares are about them…No, they're not like that…It's just when they're in my nightmares, I can't see they're faces…"

Her eyes were stating to water, her poor baby…She could hear little sobs in his voice.

"Once I-" he choked a little. "I dreamt I cut myself, I went to my parents. I tried to get their attention, but they were to busy. They said that I was going to make them late. I begged them to help but they wouldn't listen! I was bleeding to death and they wouldn't listen!"

By now tears were streaming down Vivian's face. "They left for work and…I couldn't stand anymore. I collapsed, and the last thing I saw was my Mother…Leaving me a sticky note."

Vivian didn't know what to make of this. Her child was having these terrible dreams, and she didn't even know…How? She looked around the hall; she never realized how many notes there were…When was the last time she actually spoke to her son? _Really_ spoke with him? She tried to think of a time, but all recent memory brought was quick hellos, goodbyes, how-was-your-days, and I-love-yous.

It began to piece together in her mind. She and Frank were never home, so they left Eddward those notes, so he'd know what needed to be done…They never meant for it get so out of hand. All the work…It was to help him, to care for him! But, she realized with growing horror. They weren't _helping_ their son, they were _hurting _him.

A fresh wave of tears fell. Her worst nightmare was coming true…

She was destroying her baby.


	3. Chapter 3

Hooray chapter 3!! 8D Thanks again to eyelovefantasy for beta reading! And thanks to all who've reviewed so far!

Now before you start reading, I have a statement and a question.

Statement: You see, when I posted this I wasn't really paying attention to _where _I posted it. It is an Ed Edd n Eddy story, but it also a bit of a crossover. ^^;

Question: Do I have to move it to the crossovers? _Can _I move it to the crossovers? Will take the story down if don't? If you know please tell me.

R&R please!!

* * *

After taking a few minutes to calm herself, Vivian decided that for now it was best that Eddward not know she had heard him talking to his friend. At least not until she spoke with Frank about this. She took a deep breath, putting on the best smile she could, not wanting him to get any hint of her distress. She went into his room:

"Good morning Eddward!" her voice sounded happy and level, good.

Though it seemed she startled him more than she intended; he whirled around shock apparent on his face.

"Mother?!" his attention was quickly drawn back to the phone. "No Eddy, I didn't just call you 'mother'."

She couldn't help but chuckle a little at that. "I brought you your breakfast Son, I hope you like it."

He watched her set the tray on his desk, a look of almost disbelief on his face. He came over looking at what she brought. "It looks delicious…Thank you, Mother."

He turned back to her, almost staring, like he expected her to disappear.

"Not that I'm not happy to see you….But why aren't you at work? You're usually gone by now."

"I have today off," she answered, not missing how his eyes widened a bit. "I hoped we might spend the day together. If you'd like."

"Of course I would, that sounds wonderful." a smile finally on his face. "Will Father be joining us?" his smile now hopeful.

"I'm afraid not, he wasn't able to." she hated having to tell him that, watching his smile fall. She was sure she heard his heart break.

"Oh…"

"He wanted to spend time with you Eddward, really. But our boss just wouldn't let us be off at the same time…"

"It's alright," he looked at her. She'd never seen such a heart broken smile. "I understand…Your jobs are very demanding."

"Eddward…" she didn't know what to say to him. She hated seeing him hurt so much. She was going to pull him into a hug, but:

"HEY DOUBLE D! WHAT HAPPENED TO YA?!"

Their attention snapped back to the phone, that was loud enough for _her_ to hear.

"Oh, I'm sorry Eddy!" her son said. "I forgot you were still there."

Vivian sighed; she'd have to remember to tell Eddward to call his friend back next time.

"Why don't you finish talking to your friend Eddward. Just don't let your breakfast get to cold."

"Yes Mother."

Vivian left her son's room, letting him talk to his friend privately. As she headed for the kitchen, to make her own breakfast, she decided that she would avoid bringing up the talk they just had. She wanted this day to be enjoyable for Eddward. And obviously, that subject wouldn't help with that.

* * * *

After breakfast was finished, and they had both cleaned up, they discussed what activities they would do together. Vivian insisted that Eddward chose, this day was for him after all. When he said that he wasn't sure what they could do, she asked what he usually did around this time. He told her that this was when he would give the spiders in the basement their morning 'examination'.

She did _not_ like the idea of her son playing with those wretched creatures but consented none-the-less. Once they were in the basement, she saw that her son seemed to know what he was doing. Even so, she had to restrain herself from smacking the too-big-and-brightly-colored-for-her-liking 'Mildred'.

The rest of the morning went by fairly quickly, and so far they were having a nice time. But there was a gap between them that bothered her. Not that it surprised her at that point. She never spent enough time with him to form any kind of bond. It felt more like visiting a distant relative then a mother spending time with her child.

Around lunch time Eddward's friends came banging at the door. You might think she would be annoyed at this, but she wasn't really. She was curious about the people her son spent all his time with. They seemed like good boys, the one called 'Ed' was a tad slow. But friendly…

"_Hello Mrs. Double D's mom! I am Ed, and I am pleased to make your gravy!"_

The shorter boy 'Eddy' though, he was almost bitter towards her.

"_Yeah, hi."_

It didn't take too long to figure out that this was who Eddward had been talking to earlier. So apparently he had gotten his first impression of her long before then. He saw her as the person who was hurting his friend. And in a sense, he was right. But she was going to fix that.

The rest of the day was uneventful, and soon enough it was time for dinner. They had what she hoped was Eddwards favorite, spaghetti. She silently thanked the Lord when he said it was. After dinner they settled on the couch to watch some TV together. They found a good movie about life in the colonial days. She tried to cuddle him a bit, he didn't resist, but there was an awkwardness about it that kept it from getting anywhere near the tenderness she was hoping for.

This had to change; she knew what needed to be done. Once the movie was over and Eddward had gone upstairs to get ready for bed, she went into the kitchen to make a call to her boss Mr. Farns. He often worked very late hours so he was probably still at the office. The phone rang for a few minutes before he picked up.

"You've reached Farns." he sounded annoyed, wonderful.

"Hello, Mr. Farns. This is Vivian."

"Oh, hello Vivian. Did you enjoy your day off?"

"Yes sir, I-"

"Good," he cut her off. "Because you won't be getting another for a good long while."

"Actually sir, I was calling to talk to you about that." Please, _please _let him be in a generous mood…

"What do you mean?" His voice darkened ever so slightly.

"Well, I was wondering if you could, well…"

"Spit it out woman, I don't have all night."

"I was wondering if it could be extended."

"…._What?_"

"I want more time o-"

"No."

"But sir…"

"_No._"

"Please, sir." no, she wasn't above begging. Not for this. "I really need the extra time."

"…" he sighed. "How long did you want it extended?"

Hope welled up in her, maybe he would agree to it. "Oh, a few days…Months…"

"_What?!_" he choked. "Are you insane?!"

"Sir, please. Just listen-"

"No, Vivian. I can't aford to have you gone. It's out of the question."

"But Mr. Farms It's for my son! There's something very wrong, I can't leave him home alone anymore!"

"Vivian, I sympathize with that. But I really can't allow you to be gone that long. You know how imcompetent those other idiots that work here can be. The company would crash and burn without you and Frank."

"Well…Is there a way I could work from home?"

"Vivian-"

"_Please_ sir." her desperation was clear in her voice. "Please."

"…_Sigh…_I'll see what I can do. But I have to tell you, I won't be able to arange anything right away."

"How long will it take?"

"Weeks, maybe months."

"Months?!" she couldn't believe it!

"I'm sorry Vivian," …he actually sounded sincere. "But that's all I'm able to do."

"It's fine sir," she lied. "I understand."

"Well, I need to get back to this paperwork. Good night Vivian."

"Good night sir." They both hung up, that didn't go as she'd hoped. Now what was she supposed to do…?

_Wait…_Another idea came to her, she would have to run it by Frank first. But it could work…

* * * *

Later, after Eddward had gone to bed, Vivian waited anxiously for Frank to get home. It was already past eleven whan she heard his car pulling in the garage. When Frank steped in he was quite surprised to see her.

"Vivian, why are you still up? I thought you were going to bed early tonight."

"Sit down Frank," she wasn't going waste time with this. "We need to talk."

He was taken aback by her bluntness. "Alright," he lowered himself into the chair next to her. "About what?"

"Eddward."

"What about Eddward?" he studied her face; she looked…Worried, even scared. That sent alarms off in his head. "Vivian, is Eddward alright?"

"…No"

Frank's chest filled with dread. "Is he hurt?!"

"Yes, but not in the way you're thinking…"

"What do you mean?"

"He didn't get hurt Frank, he's _being _hurt." she looked like she was about to cry. "By us."

"What? Vivian that's nonsense."

"No it isn't Frank!" he was shocked by the sudden hostility in her voice. "I heard him talking to his friend; He's been having horrible nightmares, Frank. Filled with blood, death and-" she choked. "Us."

"…Us?" Frank didn't beleive that. Eddward knew they would never hurt him…Didn't he?

"We're never around for him Frank; he doesn't know how much we really love him! And how would he? We always leave him notes, we never speak with him face to face. For all he knows we hate him!" She broke down into tears, not able to hold it in anymore.

"Vivian…" Frank got up and huged his wife, allowing her to cry into shirt. When she was done he loosened the hug enough to look her in the eyes. "You're…Sure about this?"

"Yes Frank," she wiped her eyes. "There's no doubt."

She sighed. "We can't leave him alone anymore…I'm terrified of what the next stage of this will be…"

"I'll call Mr. Farns to see if-"

"I already tried, we won't be able to work from home for months."

"Then what are we going to do about this…?"

"I've already thought of something. I wanted to make sure it was alright with you before I tried it though."

"What is it?"

"If _we _can't be here with Eddward," she picked up the phone. "Then someone else will."

"What? Vivian, you're not actually suggesting a nanny are you?"

"Not a nanny, a relative of mine."

Frank's eyes lit with understnding. "You mean…?"

"Yes," she pulled the number out of an address book. "I'm calling my aunt."

"You havn't spoken to her in years…"

"I know."

"Are you sure she'll agree to this?"

"She will, she always loved Eddward like a grandchild." She began to dial.

Frank raised his eyebrows. "She won't mind you calling this late?"

"This is urgent. She'll understand." Vivian listened once again to the ringing of a phone. Praying that her aunt would pick up. _Come on…_

She was going to give up; when the phone was answered. The tired yet kind voice of an elderly woman spoke.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Aunt Muriel."


	4. Chapter 4

'Chap 4 already? Wow, something MUST be wrong. ;P Thanks again to all who reviewed! Here's some pie for you! (hands you pie)

Anyway, I've decided to leave it here instead of moving it to crossovers. As long as there's no danger of it being removed, it doesn't seem to big of a thing.

Hope you continue to enjoy!

* * *

Muriel hummed softly as she sat in her rocking chair, slowly rocking back and forth. Enjoying a cup of tea as a way to relax after quite the exiting day. She had won at bingo, again! The prize was a brand new tea set, one she had been eyeing in the store for a good while.

Eustace was in his chair, snoring loudly, the remote still in his hand. One particularly loud snort got Muriel's attention. She chuckled; Eustace always fell asleep while watching his shows. Another sound got her attention, though this one was much softer. She looked down to see Courage, her beloved dog, yawing and stretching. The poor thing looked exhausted. It must getting late.

"Come on Courage," she said, rising from her chair. "Let's get to bed."

"Mm-hmm." was Courage's reply. Stretching as he got up from the carpet.

Muriel went into the kitchen to put her cup in the sink, when the phone rang. She looked at the clock, it was 11: 28. Who would be calling at this hour…?

She went over and picked up the receiver.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Aunt Muriel."

It took only a few seconds for her to recognize that voice, even though she hadn't heard it in a long time.

"Vivian? Is that you?"

"Yes Aunt Muriel, it's me."

Muriel was thrilled to finally hear from her niece again. It had been far too long.

"It's good to hear from you again darlin'. We haven't seen you in over six years. How's Frank?"

"He's fine," Muriel noticed something was off in Vivian's voice, but couldn't quite place it.

"And how's little Eddward? Oh, I suppose he's not so little anymore…"

"No, he isn't…" was that…Sorrow she heard in Vivian's voice?

"Vivian, is everything alright?"

"No…" It sounded as if she had been crying. "Aunt Muriel, something has gone terribly wrong…"

"What? Oh no, you and Frank aren't fighting are you?"

"No, it isn't that." she took a deep breath. "It's Eddward."

"What happened?"

"My worst nightmare's coming true…My baby's hurting and it's my fault!"

"What ever do you mean?"

"You remember when Frank and I moved from Kansas to Virginia don't you?"

"Of course I do." Muriel was wondering where this was going.

"You know why we moved there?"

"Because of a good job offer?"

"Yes. We believed that with high paying jobs, we could provide more for Eddward." Muriel could clearly hear remorse now. "But we never anticipated that keeping that money coming would take over all our time…Leaving none for Eddward."

Muriel simply waited for her to continue.

"We thought we were taking care of him, now we realize we've only done more harm than good. Much more. Our lack of presence is destroying his health… "

"Well, why don't you just spend more time with him?"

"That's what I wanted to do, but I'm not able to…"

"Why not?"

"Because my boss won't allow me to work from home, not for several months anyway. And I can't just quit, we need the money."

"Oh dear, that's terrible."

"Yes…It's also why I called."

"Oh?"

"You see Aunt Muriel, since Frank and I aren't able to care for Eddward; I was hoping you and Uncle Eustace could." What?

"What?"

"Please? Just until Frank and I can work from home."

"Vivian, I'm not sure if-"

"_Please _Aunt Muriel," Desperation leaked into her voice. "I can't leave him alone anymore. What if he starts hurting himself?"

That thought sent a jolt of fear through Muriel. "You think he'd do that?"

"I'm not sure…I hope not, but I refuse to risk it."

Muriel thought for a moment, even though she hadn't seen them in years, she still loved Vivian, Frank and Eddward very much. And the pain and panic she could hear in her niece's words were enough for her.

"Alright, we'll watch Eddward for ya."

"Really?" her relief was evident.

"Of course. I haven't seen Eddward in too long anyway. When will you be sending him up?"

"Um, actually Aunt Muriel, I was thinking that _you _would come _here._"

"Oh…Why?"

"Because I don't think taking Eddward away from his friends will help the situation."

That did make sense…

"We'll come there then, I think I'd like to meet his friends anyway."

"Will Uncle Eustace mind?"

"Oh he'll grumble that's for certain. But he loves Eddward as much as I do, don't worry. When do you want us to come?"

"How soon can you get here?"

"Well… I think perhaps next Monday."

"That's perfect. Eddward will be thrilled to see you."

"And we'll be thrilled to see him." She wondered how much he'd grown…

"Well, I'll let you get some sleep now, goodnight Aunt Muriel."

"Goodnight Dear."

"Oh, and Aunt Muriel?"

"Yes Dear?"

"Thank you."

Muriel smiled. "Of course, sleep well Dear."

"You too."

They hung up.

_Well, _Muriel thought. _Looks like we're going on a trip. _


	5. Chapter 5

Ok guys, chapter six is still in the works so it might take longer to get it up. ^^; Sorry!

R&R please, enjoy!

* * *

This wasn't your usual morning on the farm in No Where, and not because no monsters had come along to kidnap/abduct/hypnotize/eat/kill/steal from/ or do various other unpleasant things to them. No. This particular morning was different because Muriel had given Eustace and Courage some big news.

"_Pack your bags boys, we're heading to Virginia!"_

Now, Courage wasn't at all sure how he felt about that, but Eustace was sure how he felt…

"_I ain't goin' nowhere Muriel!"_

This of course led to the small argument they were having now.

"Oh yes you are Eustace. This is important!"

"Don't care. I ain't gettin' out of this chair!"

"Oh Eustace, you can take your chair with you! Vivian called last night and-"

"Who?"

"Vivian, our niece."

It took a moment, but the name finally registered. "She hasn't spoken to us in six years Muriel! What could she want from us?"

"She needs our help."

"I knew it! She wants to borrow money, right? Well tell her to forget it!" he snapped his newspaper.

"That wasn't it all Eustace!"

"Then what!?"

"She and Frank need our help with Eddward."

"What?" Eustace asked without moving the paper. Courage watched Muriel pull a photo out of her apron pocket, and push it under the paper into Eustace's lap.

"They- no, _Eddward _needs us."

As Eustace picked up the picture, Courage craned his neck to get a look. He couldn't see it very well though.

After he looked at it a minute, Eustace asked:

"What do you mean he 'needs us?'"

"I'm not really sure of all the details, but Vivian said that Eddward's been hurting a great deal. And she thinks it's her and Frank's fault. So she wants us to come watch him."

"What?!" he tossed the paper aside. "They can't take care of their own child, so they're going to dump him on us?!"

"It's not like that Eustace! Viv-"

"No Muriel! He's their kid, not ours! They should've took better care of him!"

"But he is _our _nephew, Eustace." Muriel pointed out.

"I _know _that Muriel, but he's not-"

"Not what?" Muriel asked, an unusual venom in her voice. "As important as your shows?"

Even Eustace was taken aback. "That's not what I meant Muriel."

"Then what do you mean?"

Eustace sighed, rubbing his temples. "It's just…We don't know anything about raising a child Muriel."

"That's not true. I would take care of Vivian when she was small."

"You would _baby sit _her. There's a difference."

"I know but…" she paused. "Eddwards hurting and Vivian asked for our help. Shouldn't that be enough reason to go?" she looked right at him. "Don't you care about him?"

"Of course I do Muriel!" she took a step back, surprised. "I love that boy more than you know! How can you question that?"

Muriel looked down, feeling ashamed. "I'm sorry Eustace, it's just that I can't stand the thought of them like this…Can we please go? I already told Vivian we would."

Eustace studied his wife's face, in it he saw the compassion that made him fall for her those years ago. He then looked at the photo of Eddward; in it he saw the innocence that could only be found in child. He also saw so much youthful joy. Joy, he realized, that was being denied to him now. He came to a decision.

"Alright Muriel, we'll go."

Her eyes widened. "Really? You mean it?"

"Yeah."

"Oh thank you Eustace!" she flung her arms around him. "Thank you!"

Eustace scowled, but returned the embrace.

Courage smiled at the scene in front of him; not just because Muriel was happy. But also because this was a side of Eustace rarely seen. The side that explained why Muriel put up with Eustace's many faults. As they continued their hug, the photo slipped off Eustace's lap onto the floor. Courage took the opportunity to take a look.

When he saw the image, something like a tidal wave of memory hit him. He _knew _the name Eddward sounded familiar! There in the picture, was small child no older than three, smiling brightly. His sparkling sapphire eyes were full of laughter and an unusual intelligence. On his head was a ski cap more than a few sizes to big.

This was Eddward.

Eddward was not alone in picture. Next to him sat Courage, smiling widely sharing a hug with him. How could he forgotten Eddward? Looking at this picture reminded him of so much. He remembered when Eddward and his parents were living with them. He remembered playing with him. He remembered having to save the toddler from falling down stairs on several occasions.

Courage also remembered, with a frown, the day they moved away. He was so sad that day; having to say goodbye to his little friend. Seeing Eddward cry, when he realized as much as any toddler could, that they would not be coming back. Waving goodbye to him as they drove to a place hundreds of miles away.

There was an empty feeling in the house for weeks after.

Courage looked back at Eustace and Muriel as they broke from their hug. Muriel smiled.

"Well," she said. "We'd better start packing."

She looked down at Courage, and noticed he had the picture.

"Ah Courage, you remember Eddward don't ya? Just think, you'll get to play with him again soon!"

Courage yipped happily at her. Though he knew there was much more to it than that.

They began to head up the stairs to start packing, when Eustace called after them:

"Muriel, when are they expecting us to get there?"

"This coming Monday."

"What?!"

* * * *

It was the day before they were supposed to head out to Virginia. All packing was done and Muriel had arranged for one of her friends to watch the farm while they were gone. Courage had made some arrangements as well; he had the computer to agree to keep him posted on the happenings in No Where. Neither would admit it, but it was also to stay in touch with each other.

Muriel and Courage had decided to take one last walk through the town park before they left. Courage was glad they could because he had some friends he needed to say goodbye to. Now where were they…? Aha! There they were!

Courage ran over to his two friends; a young Collie named Sally and an old Great Dane named Sam.

"Sally! Sam!" he called as approached them.

"Hi Courage!" Sally waved at him.

"Hey there youngster," Sam smiled.

"Hey, I need tell you guys something." Courage said.

"What?"

"Well, my humans and I are gonna be leaving No Where soon."

"What? Why?" Sally's ears drooped a little.

"Well, um…You guys remember Eddward?"

"That human pup you used to play with?" asked Sam.

"Yeah, we're gonna go to his place."

Sally smiled widely at him. "That's great Courage! I hope you have lots of fun!"

"Um…That might be kinda hard Sally…"

"Why?" she asked, confused.

"See, the reason we're going is because Eddward's needs our help."

"What happened to him?" asked Sam.

"Nothing _happened_ to him, not really."

"Then why does he need help?"

"Well…His parents haven't been taking very good care of him. They've been leaving alone all the time, and it's hurting him."

"That's terrible!" Sally gasped. "What kind of parent does that to their pup?"

"The bad kind." Sam growled.

"They aren't bad people," they looked at him skeptically. "Really! They just made mistakes."

"Mistakes that hurt their pup," Sally pointed out.

"Yeah, but…"

"Regardless of what kind of parents they are," Sam interrupted. "You're about to have a lot more responsibility Courage."

"Huh?"

"He's right," Sally nodded. "Human pups need just as much love and attention as our pups do."

"Yep", Sam agreed. "And it sounds to me like this pup is gonna need more than usual."

"'Cause of his parents right?" asked Courage.

Sam nodded. "Damage has been done to him. Now you have to help repair it."

Courage gulped, starting feel nervous. But he decided, he was gonna be strong for Eddward.

"I'll do everything I can," he said.

"Good," said Sam, looking satisfied.

"It's good you're going to take care of your pup Courage," Sally said, looking sad again. "But gosh I'm gonna miss you!" She hugged him tightly.

"Don't worry Sally!" Courage gasped in her grip. "We can stay in touch!"

"How?" she released him.

"You can send me mail from the computer back at the farm. He might get superior with you but he'll do it."

"Okay," Sally smiled. "Make sure to write us as soon as you can, and we'll do the same!"

"Sure thing, Sally."

"Courage!" they heard Muriel call. "Courage, it's time to go!"

"Well, guess I'd better- GAK!" Sally had yanked him into another death hug.

"We'll miss you!!" she sobbed.

"I'll - _cough - _miss you - _wheeze - _too!"

"Sally, don't choke him!" Sam laughed. "He's got a job to do!"

"Oh yeah," she let go of him, smiling sheepishly. "Sorry."

"It's okay Sally, don't worry about it."

"Courage!" Muriel called again.

"I'd better go," said Courage. "Bye guys!" he ran towards Muriel.

"Give your pup our regards!"

"Bye Courage!!"

"Bye!!" he shouted one last time, before picking up speed.

He was dog on a mission now. Not that he ever wasn't, but this one was special.

_I'm coming Eddward!_


End file.
